I’ve been fiddling around with WordPress for almost a week now, and considering the idea of starting this blog for a while longer. Emails and Facebook and WhatsApps don’t necessarily give much of an insight into the daily delights (and occasional distress :p) that come with living abroad. Plus, this way I can document a particularly wonderful/exciting/challenging time in my life, AND as a bonus I’m not making anyone read anything they’d rather not read.
My idea is to try to update this WordPress at least once a week with something that has to do with my life abroad … food, people, activities, trips, anything! I’ll keep this first post simple and dedicate it to the sunshine that briefly graced Leiden with its presence this weekend.
A view I am spoiled enough to walk by almost every day.
Sometimes canals have windmills on them.
Another advantage to canals = houseboats.
The perfect day for a walk atop the old Leiden fortress (“burcht”).
I don’t need an excuse to stroll through the market, but sunshine has a way of making it feel all the more romantic, like the opening scene of Beauty and the Beast, where Belle sings/reads her way through the village marketplace. Ahem. Plus, I had some excellent company in the form of Marjolein, my wonderful friend who came over all the way from Belgium – but I’ll save that for another post!
Fabric market.
Arguably the best part about the market? The little tables loaded up with samples! (There may have been a very (un)casual second walk-by involved with this one …)
Free samples? Yes please!
It may only have been 6 degrees out, but this weekend the terraces were packed with sun-lovers soaking up some much-needed vitamin D. Apparently it’s a documented epidemic in Northern Europe that people suffer from a D-deficiency in the winter, and then overdose on it in the summer. (Don’t quote me on that.)
Terrace culture.
Even the sleepiest of birdies were out!
All in all, it was a wonderful, sunny weekend to make even the coldest of hearts thaw. Of course, if I’ve learned anything about Dutch weather in my nine months here, it’s that it could very well be hailing in an hour :p
Sophie in Clogs 